The Edinburgh International Book Festival, which ended on Monday, celebrated a rise of 3% in ticket sales from 2007 with three quarters of all tickets selling. Persistent rain in one of the wettest Augusts on record turned parts of Charlotte Square gardens into muddy pools frequented by yellow rubber ducks and seagulls, but the festival still saw almost 200,000 visitors.

The Edinburgh Book Festival continues with a special autumn event with award-winning Australian author David Malouf. Master storyteller and

Career soldier General Sir Mike Jackson spoke last week of his experiences in conflicts from Northern Ireland to Iraq in a packed event at the

For over thirty years, Alastair Reid has deserved five stars.

It's been said (at least by this reviewer) that Scotland was gifted both bagpipes and haggis by the folk of the steppes of Asia, and has never seen the joke. It's certain that how Scotland came by "the national instrument" is at least as mysterious as some of its subsequent history.

Alzheimer's and dementia are words most of us fear. We may know those who do or have suffered from these conditions in their later years, and dread the possibility of diagnosis for ourselves. It seems a place from which no-one returns, except briefly and with painful fleeting recognition of what they have lost.

One might expect a good-sized audience for any event with 'Independence' and 'Scotland' in the title, and thus it was. The Speigeltent was fair packed to hear the views and reflections of Professor Murray Pittock, Harry Reid and Paul Henderson Scott. All confessed themselves in favour of Scottish independence, but their versions and visions were reassuringly diverse and divergent.

Regarded by many as among the most prestigious and worthwhile prizes for literary endeavour, the James Tait Black prizes for fiction and biography are keenly noted by those with serious interest in the state of these arts.

Roland Glover ably filled in for Alan Little, "away" doing more pressing work than interviewing Misha Glenny at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. He and we needn't have worried; an hour in the company of Misha Glenny is to profit from one of the most informed and sharpest minds contemplating the state we're in.

Three acknowledged experts on China took a capacity audience at the Edinburgh Book Festival's Studio Theatre on a quick trip through China's long history, revealing many interesting new facts and offering a different perspective on some accepted ones. They neatly encapsulated thousands of years of history, without leaving the audience feeling there had been glaring omissions.

Wedged among a bevy of blue rinses, it was tempting to speculate how many had turned out on yet another unpredictable August evening principally to see Esther Rantzen, doyenne of Auntie Beeb's

"Guilt," a late friend of this reviewer's observed, "is a useless emotion." Except perhaps insofar as it causes us to reconsider and revise our behaviours. Professor Tom Devine acknowledged his own sense of guilt in not recognising African slavery as a principal factor in the development of capitalist economies, including Scotland.

Whether you're a writer, involved in the "industry" or a mere humble book purchaser, you likely have your own view on trends in publishing. Keith A Charteris, author and publisher of books for children, Bob McDevitt of recently formed Hachette Scotland and Marion Sinclair offered their own overviews.

"Stories in Stone" is the title of a series of podcasts to be launched by Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature later this month.

The Edinburgh International Book Festival (EIBF) has won funding from the Scottish Government's Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund to commission and publish a compilation of Scottish authors' work. Lights Off The Quay will feature work by Scottish authors Don Paterson, Janice Galloway, AL Kennedy, and John Burnside.

Alexander McCall Smith is a literary enigma.

Journalist, broadcaster and author Jonathan Dimbleby spoke yesterday of his fascinating 10,000 mile journey across Russia in front of a capacity audience at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

We're weel kent for pithiness in this part of the world. For summing up our fellows, often to their detriment, in concise,

Something rather cheerful appears to have happened to A.L. Kennedy of late - she fair bounced into the RBS Main Theatre of the Edinburgh International Book Festival for her eight o' clock slot.

Where's the best place to people watch? Or to feel the sand between your toes? What's the best place to take the kids? Or best show to make plans for world domination? Prepare to tackle the Festival with these recommendations.